


on the otherside

by winterbitch (WinterLadyy)



Series: dream au [2]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Domestic Fluff, Dreams vs. Reality, Lazy Mornings, M/M, Married Life, Team as Family, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-11
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-12-12 05:03:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20988815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterLadyy/pseuds/winterbitch
Summary: There's always more than one reality. In some, Tony is happy. Married, with an amazing team who turned into family. With golden mornings and lazy kisses. In others, he wakes up alone in his dark bedroom, his chest still aching from Captain America's shield.





	on the otherside

**Author's Note:**

> imported from tumblr

He wakes up warm and safe.

James is awake, Tony can tell because his hand is lightly trailing up and down Tony’s back. That’s what woke him up.

Yet, he feels rested.

They’ve been together for 5 years, married for 3 and he’s still surprised to wake up rested and ready. He’s still surprised to be so loved and cared for.

“Mornin’ doll,” James drawls in that sexy accent of his, voice rough with sleep.

Tony shudders happily and kisses his neck, his skin warm and soft. “Hi.”

It’s all he can manage at the moment, but his husband just chuckles, the sound echoing in Tony’s ears, and kisses his messy hair.

“Breakfast?” Bucky asks finally, after another 5 minutes in silence.

“Who’s cooking?”

“Clint, if we’re lucky,” James replies with a small laugh. “But probably Steve. Clint and Nat had a long night.”

Tony whines. Steve is a wonderful friend bug his cooking leaves a lot to be desired. The man still doesn’t quite grasp that he can use spices and herbs and actually make things taste good, so his breakfasts tend to be bland.

It’s still endearing to see a big buff tough man in a pink apron mother-henning all of them.

Finally, they get up.

Still rumpled and wearing pyjamas - Iron Man sweatpants in Bucky’s case, and pink boxers and a t-shirt in Tony’s. They’re messy and sleepy and God, Tony loves this man so much, especially like this - with soft eyes and pink lips, hair a giant bird’s nest, his metal arm still warm from the bed.

“You’re thinkin’ sappy thoughts,” James accuses him with a wide smile. Tony just leans against him in the elevator.

“You’re just so sweet…” Tony coos and squeals when Bucky starts smothering him in kisses.

They stumble out of the elevator like that, laughing and tangled together and their team just rolls their eyes.

Stave is predictably at the stove, but Bruce is sitting close, probably to give advice. Thor is still sleeping at the table, and Loki is either out doing nothing good or still sleeping.

Natasha and Clint are absent, but Tony knows they’ll appear eventually.

They’re all sucker for a home-cooked breakfast.

“Hey fellas,” Steve says brightly, though he’s rolling his eyes. “Already going at it? Buck, I don’t think Tony’s awake yet,” he teased.

His husband just snorts and wraps his arms around Tony’s waist from behind as the genius makes coffee. “You’re jus’ jealous,” he shrugs. “Ain’t pretty, Stevie.”

They bicker like that until breakfast is ready, hug even then James keeps him close, one arm wrapped around Tony’s shoulders as they eat.

Natasha and Clint finally stumble into the kitchen, looking rough but unharmed and Steve has a pile of scrambled eggs and bacon waiting for them.

Tony leans back against his husband and smiles, looking at his mismatched family. It’s nice, to have a quiet morning.

“Love you, sweetheart,” James purrs into his ear.

He turns to face him and opens his mouth to reply, his heart bursting with adoration and happiness-

And Tony wakes up.

For a while, he just stares at the ceiling, unmoving, telling himself his eyes sting from the lack of sleep. Only from that.

It’s probably partially true, as Friday informs him he got all 2 hours of sleep.

It’s not unusual.

He sighs and curls on his side, wincing when his chest flares up in pain, but nothing is worse than the emptiness he feels when he looks at the other side of the bed.

It’s unused, of course, but every time Tony wakes up from those damned dreams, he expects warm blue eyes to be looking at him from his left.

He closes his eyes and breathes. He can’t know for sure, of course, but he hopes they aren’t just dreams.

He hopes that there is a Tony Stark out there, actually a Tony Stark-Barnes, who’s happy and in love, with a family of his teammates and bright mornings and laughs.

He hopes that the world was kinder to that Tony than it was to him.


End file.
